Holiday houses in Coldstream

The drive from Melbourne’s city centre to Coldstream takes less than an hour, but when you arrive here, you’ll be transported to a wonderful world of rolling pastures, lush orchards, manicured flower gardens, and alleys of grapevines. This is the gateway to the Yarra Valley, Victoria’s oldest wine region, with grapes transformed into applauded Pinot Noir and Chardonnay varietals here since 1938. The cool-climate region is additionally known for its sparkling wines, which you can sip while savouring local produce at dozens of cellar doors, many with attached restaurants and cafes.

Coldstream is also the jump-off point for the Dandenong Ranges, where Melbourne’s eastern suburbs fade into a spine of forests and mountains — think ferny glades, tiny villages, and soaring mountain ash trees. Hike to lookouts through national parkland, jump aboard a historic steam train, stop to smell the flowers in botanical gardens, and explore charming towns with fairytale names like Sassafras and Olinda.

Coldstream and the Yarra Valley may only be 45 kilometres from Melbourne, but this cool-climate region, surrounded by the Great Dividing Range and the Dandenong Ranges, experiences notably divergent weather conditions to the Victorian capital. Summers are generally cooler and dry, making touring and other outdoor pursuits particularly enjoyable. Then autumn sees the deciduous gardens of the countryside change to fiery hues, ideal for leaf-peeping. This season is also grape harvest, transforming any cellar door visit into a lively affair. Come spring, the glorious gardens of the Dandenong Ranges burst into bloom. Melbournians delight in visiting the mountains here in winter for the crisp air and treetops dusted in white powder.

Coldstream Trail

This food and wine trail links 10 of the Yarra Valley’s delicious purveyors, who’ve been selected to showcase the diversity of the region’s offerings. Pick strawberries, wander through orchards, sip wines, try local beers, and then enter a cheese coma at a local dairy. The short route — just 13 kilometres (eight miles) — offers a lovely snapshot of the countryside.

Get a bird’s-eye view

Once you’ve sampled and savoured the Yarra Valley’s vineyards from ground level, take to the skies to gain some perspective. Sunrise hot-air balloon rides offer views of the countryside cast aglow, with your balloon gliding low over neat rows of grapes blanketing rolling hills. Touch down and toast your sky-high journey with a champagne breakfast.

TarraWarra Museum of Art

Travel 20 minutes north of Coldstream to the town of Healesville to discover this shrine to Australian art from the mid-20th century onwards. Many works come from private collections.